Second Rising
by Ekly Valdur
Summary: Set after the episode Epilogue. Luthor and Darkseid are back, and the League is too small to handle them. They must recruit new members, as well as bring back any old members who can still fight. How will Wonder Woman react to a new Batman? Why did she leave the League in the first place? Those questions and more will be answered here! I only wish that I owned Batman/Batman Beyond
1. Chapter 1

Bruce listened to the ticking clock in his study, an all too familiar sound that he was growing to despise more and more. Still, he couldn't bring himself to break the thing. It had been his grandfather's, and though he hadn't known his grandfather, he could remember the clock breaking when he was a child. His father had been on edge until it could be repaired.

He was waiting for Terry to come back. A few years ago the clock hadn't been an issue during his wait, because he had stayed in the cave while Terry went out. Always at the computer, waiting to hear from the kid and to help in any way he could. Terry didn't need the help anymore, and probably hadn't for a good while before Bruce had stopped.

Bruce would be down there now, watching and listening, waiting for the much more chance to offer help, if he hadn't been all but banned from his own damn cave. It was better than sitting here listening to the clock. He knew rationally that Terry's complete insistence that he stay out of the cave was well founded. It was still irritating.

There were two very compelling reasons for Bruce to stay upstairs. One was the cold in the cave. As he'd continued to lose weight in his advancing age it was harder to keep warm down there. He'd gotten pneumonia a few times. Still, that hadn't been enough to keep him away. He was willing to use gloves and blankets. He'd bought several space heaters to put around the computer. It had helped.

Then, he'd had his fall.

His damned knee had just buckled one day when he was going down the stairs into the cave. He hadn't even been going down to do anything for Terry. There had just been a day that he'd decided to go down and take another real look around. He had wanted to reminisce, look at his collection, go through old files. Maybe even sit in the old Batmobile. He missed driving it, even now.

When he fell he didn't even make it to the bottom of the steps. He could remember Terry finding him, hours later. He'd drifted in and out of consciousness for hours, unable to move when he woke. He had gotten a concussion, dislocated his right arm, and broken his left leg in three places. He knew he'd been lucky to survive a fall like that at his age. He was still annoyed with himself for letting it happen. That was the last time he'd tried to go to the cave alone. Now if he really wanted to go down he would tell Terry, and the kid would walk down with him, ready to catch Bruce should he nearly fall again.

He really hated it. So he nearly never mentioned it. He hadn't been in the cave now for nearly six months. Maybe it would be good to go down again soon, before he really couldn't go again.

4:37 am.

Terry would be back soon, so long as nothing major happened. He would usually call if he got himself called in on something big so Bruce wouldn't wait up for him. Bruce always waited anyway. It was too hard not to.

Is this what it felt like for Alfred, all those years ago? He hoped not. He certainly wouldn't wish this feeling on his friend.

He wasn't surprised that more than fourty years after his death, he still so often found himself thinking about Alfred. The man had never left him. Never even stopped working. And Alfred had called Bruce stubborn. He wished his friend had lived long enough to see him retire. As dark a time as it was for Bruce when he'd sealed up the cave, he knew Alfred would have found relief in knowing he was done putting on the cape and cowl.

A chirping noise grabbed his attention, he picked up the small alarm and turned it off. The device let him know when the cave doors opened. Terry was entering the cave.

Not five minutes later, the clock opened.

"Hey Old Man." Terry walked in, already changed into his civilian clothes.

"Anything interesting happen tonight?"

"It was all pretty routine. Here, this is for you." He held out an envelope.

He raised a brow, but took the envelope that no one had bothered to seal. He opened the flap and pulled out... an invitation, to the wedding of Terry McGuinness and Dana Tan. "It's in two months. Didn't give yourselves a lot of time to plan things."

"Yeah, Dana said she's waited long enough as it is." Terry smiled softly, and sat in the armchair on the opposite side of the desk, slouched, with a leg dangling over an arm. "I suspect she's done most of the planning already."

"I don't think you're wrong."

"Well we want you to come. I know you don't exactly like to go out but-"

"I'll be there."

Terry smiled again, and sat up a little straighter. "One more thing. You're not going to like it."

"Go ahead."

"I promised Dana a real honeymoon. A whole week, no suit. Unless there's some kind of Omega level disaster."

"Even I can understand that. Still, the city could suffer if the rabble realizes you're not here. There will be a lot of recon to do when you get back."

"If I can find an old friend it won't be an issue. Remember Zeta? Well I figure maybe he could cover with the small time stuff. If not I can ask a leaguer to keep an eye out. Lantern maybe... he's the responsible type."

"That was one nice thing about having a close team at home. I could count on them to take care of things when I needed them to. Even when I considered early retirement just before my wedding, they would have taken on the city on their own."

"Wedding?" Now the kid really sat straight, both his feet on the floor.

"Hn. Yes, one of them. It's nearly five. Aren't you supposed to be getting home?"

"Oh come on Bruce. Spill."

"About which one?"

"Both. I don't need every detail, but... You don't talk about anything non-bat related often. I just wanna know."

He sighed. It was always progressively harder to turn down this kind of request from the kid. His kid. His son. Terry had always been somewhat curious about his past, but the urge to know more had grown significantly after his talks with Amanda Waller. Once things had calmed between them they had both struggled with showing some kind of affection for each other.

"My first engagement was to Andrea Beaumont. We were together just before I became Batman. I would have given up on the idea to be with her. She didn't know about it. She left, and it was ten years before I found out why." He paused as he remembered. He had been so different when he had loved Andrea. "Her father was in trouble, being hunted by the Joker. She didn't tell me, she just decided to run away with him, to keep him safe."

Terry was quiet, he just nodded slightly to show he understood. Terry knew that talking during A Story was the best way for it to get cut short.

"The next time, I did get married. She told me her name was Susan McGuire. It was moronic. I wasn't really in love... She just made having a relationship so easy. That was because she was not a person. Poison Ivy created plants who looked like people, for a time, so they could marry all of Gotham's richest socialites. That way when she murdered all of us our "spouses" would have control of our finances and turn them over to her."

Terry whistles, long and slow. He didn't expect more details than he'd gotten already. "That really blows."

"Uh-huh." He gave the kid a look, then pushed on his cane as he stood. "Now go home."

Terry and Dana had formed a ritual, each morning when he was done with his patrol they had breakfast together before she went to work and Terry went to sleep. They both knew he was kicking the kid out so he would get there on time.

"Sure you don't need anything before I go?"

"No."

"Okay." Terry stood, and moved for the door. "Hey, I'm glad you're coming. To the wedding. It means a lot." The kid smiled, and left. He was usually decent enough to run out when he said something too sentimental, so Bruce wouldn't have to try to respond to comments.

Bruce started his slow walk to the elevator that would take him to the second floor.

He was happy for Terry, he really was. Still, he worried what marriage would mean for the younger Batman, and subsequently, what that would mean for Gotham. Could Terry balance his life well enough to be a good husband without letting his duties falter? What would happen to the city if Terry became a father?

There would be no answers for him this morning. Bruce knew that he may never find out how well Terry balanced everything. Only time could tell, and he couldn't be sure how much time he had left any more.


	2. Chapter 2

Terry smiled as he walked through the front door to the smell of waffles. They were the healthier whole wheat kind, part of a promise to the old man to have started eating better. They had seemed completely awful on the first few tries, but Dana managed to fix them by adding a far amount of cinnamon and topping in with cooked and diced green apple mixed into warm apple sauce. It had quickly become his favorite Sunday morning breakfast.

"Hey, you're home." Dana spotted him from the kitchen as she pulled another fresh waffle from the waffle iron. "Late night?"

"I got back at the normal time, but I gave the old man his invitation. He actually told me some stories about getting engaged and married himself. Who knew?" He walked into the kitchen and picked up the glass of Shake from the counter that Dana had ready for him. He glared at it. This was the reason the very strong flavor of apple cinnamon waffles. The Shake was putrid. The eel juice flavor always overpowered anything else he tried adding to improve the taste.

"Well I did. He was a major celebrity. Didn't you ever try reading up on him?"

He commenced his usual shudder after downing The Shake and rinsed the glass. "No. It seemed like a waste of time after he told me the Bruce Wayne in the papers was like a fake. He put on the playboy billionaire act so he couldn't be perceived as someone who could be Batman."

"There was a lot of that, but there was some other stuff too. You should look into it."

"Sure." He hugged her from behind, chuckled at her "annoyed sigh" as she continued to made breakfast despite his hold hindering her range of movement, and kissed her shoulder. "But when did you get all researchy on Bruce?"

"Two times. After you told me you were Batman and I realized who the infamous was I was curious. I got more into it a few months ago when you told me about all the Cadmus stuff. I looked at a lot of his old pictures so I could try to see the resemblance. It's not completely obvious, but there are similarities."

"Right. I remember, after he used the pits and became younger... I should have noticed something then."

"No normal person would have suspected Terry."

"I'm not supposed to be normal."

"Get off it McGuinness. No one is perfect. Not even The Great . You can't keep torchering yourself because you're human. Now come on, before it gets cold." She held up his plate and he took it, moving to sit at their small table together.

He took a bite and sighed in contentment when The Shake taste was finally gone from his mouth. "Guess I wish we had both figured it sooner. It could have done us both some good."

"I could see that. So tell me about your night."

"You really don't need to hear about this stuff Dana."

She shrugged. "I tell you about my day at work. It should go both ways. Besides, I thought you'd like getting to brag about your exploits."

"In high school, probably. It just doesn't feel like that anymore."

"I still want to hear about it."

"Okay..." He ate more of his waffles. "I stopped a few Jokerz from robbing a girl. Mad Stan tried to blow up the High School. Too bad he didn't do that fifteen years ago." He smiled when she rolled her eyes, and he took a drink of his almond milk. It was one more thing on a long list that Bruce had started him on. "Saw the new Commissioner. I don't like him."

"Why not?"

"It's just a feeling. He's no Gordon."

"Going to keep an eye on him, huh?"

"I've already tapped his office, home phone, and his cell. That was about it. Some nights are easier than others."

"Sure. I need to get going." She stood up, leaned down and gave him a full kiss on the lips. "Love you. Get some sleep."

"I will. Love you too." He watched her leave, then took care of the dishes. That was their normal arrangement. He couldn't cook. Like at all. So Dana always did the cooking and he always did the cleaning. It was funny when he'd found out his lack of culinary talent could have come from Bruce. Apparently in the days of Alfred Pennyworth Bruce had been banned from ever touching the stove. Even now, if Bruce had something hot at home it came from the microwave.

Dishes done, he through the master bedroom to the bathroom and took a long hot shower. He'd "forgotten" to mention that Clayface had escaped containment last night when he talked to Bruce and Dana about his night, mostly because he'd taken an embarrassing amount of damage before managing to contain the muk-monster. It was pretty amazing now how many of Bruce's old rouge's gallery Terry had had to face. He was actually kinda proud of his teenage self for going through all of the old profiles on the computer.

He laid out on their bed and flipped on the TV. He liked to space out on it before he went to sleep. He flipped through the channels and let out a yawn. He wouldn't need to watch for long before he passed out.

Then he saw it. No. No no no. The news had cell phone footage of an exploding energy in Metropolis, enough to level several buildings, and when it settled, there were two figures standing in the smoke. They'd already been identified, remembered easily by those old enough. Darkseid and Lex Luthor. Then the pair vanished from sight.

So much for sleep.

* * *

Batman landed in the settled chaos of Metropolis. He could see several members of the League helping victims, including Superman, who flew to the Batjet after bringing an old man to the paramedics.

"It's good you're here."

Terry nodded. "I came to see if there was a way to track them first." He held up a gadget he kept forgetting the name of to scan the area. It clicked and beeped, and revealed nothing. "Slaggit."

"We could be stuck waiting for them to make a move then. That might be a good thing. It will give us a chance to gather reinforcements. The League isn't what it was the last time they were here. We're going to need help."

"Right. There doesn't seem to be as many heroes in the world as there once were."

"A lot of them decided they would rather work alone. I know you understand that, Part-Timer."

He smirked. When he had first known the Man of Steel he never would have thought that they would mock one another. He had only recently started to feel comfortable exchanging jabs with the long-time hero. Superman hadn't held back since Terry first joined though, and the older man was used to exchanging jabs with Bruce, making him the more experienced.

"True enough. You should be the one to call on them all. It will be harder for them to say no to you." Superman had the respect and admiration of anyone who did with they did. Except maybe Bruce.

"That's debatable. But there are at least two old friends that can still fight, who surely will when they know Darkseid is back. Shining Knight and Wonder Woman don't age. It's just a matter of tracking them down. Diana is probably on Themiscrya. You could get her."

"On the island of women? I don't think they'll be happy to see me there."

"We helped them once, a long time ago. They'll recognize the bat on your costume and listen to you. I can help with the public better."

He paused. Day time work wasn't any more for him than is had been for Bruce. So many years working in the shadows made working in the day feel awkward. It could be interesting to meet Wonder Woman.

"Fine. I can do that. Maybe the rest of the Amazon would be willing to be on call for a fight like this." He hopped into his seat, choosing one of the pre-programmed auto pilot destinations. "She is going to listen to me when I go talk to her, right? Did she know the Old Man well enough to trust his replacement?"

"Diana never had trust issues with any of us. Well no, there was a time for her and Shiera... Nevermind. Diana will listen. And I'm sure she'll come. She wanted to go home, but she did tell me we could go to her for real emergencies."

"Alright then. Wish me luck I guess." The glass of the jet slid over him and he was soon in the air. He looked at the estimated travel time here and wish he could get away with taking a nap. If Darkseid and Luthor moved quickly and attacked later today he was going to be more fatigued for the fight than he wanted to be. If they could just take a few days, that would be great.

On the other hand, he definitely did not want them taking so much time it interfered with his wedding. He did not want to tell Dana they needed to put things on hold after she had mailed the invitations. It would not end well for him.

He really shouldn't get ahead of himself thinking about problems on the slim chance they did occur, happened so long from now. It was always important to focus on the next task at hand. He may as well re-read whatever he could on Wonder Woman until he arrived at the island.


	3. Chapter 3

The island looked like a paradise. No wonder the Amazon Princess had wanted to go home. Lush landscapes, great beaches with white sands and clear waters. If not for the current inhabitants it could be turned into a very nice vacation spot. He decided to land in the pavilion. Best to be seen by everyone right away than a random amazon that might try to take him down. This way they would hold him off and wait for their leaders.

When his door opened he was at least half right. All the nearest amazon had several weapons pointed at him.

"No man may set foot here. Leave now." One woman came closer, spear toward his face.

"Okay. I won't get my feet out of the jet. I just need to speak to Wonder Woman. We need her help, the League needs her help." He held his hands up in a surrender. He didn't want or need to start a fight here.

"And who are you? You certainly aren't the Batman I knew."

Terry turned, and saw Wonder Woman. She wasn't in uniform, but in the sort of classic greek wear all the other amazons wore.

"I'm new. Or at least newer than the old man. Superman asked me to get you Wonder Woman. Darkseid and Luthor appeared back in Metropolis. They just disappeared again, but we figure they'll have something planned. The League isn't what it was. We need reinforcements."

There were various murmurs from the amazons, but they stopped when Wonder Woman held up her hand.

"Darkseid could destroy this world, along with many others. This is a call that I must answer. Be strong my sisters. Adreena, you have prepared for this. I will return when the threat is gone." She floated upward, and sat in the seat behind Terry's. He closed the door and took off into the sky.

"Tell me. Is he still alive?" She asked, her voice sounded strained.

"The old man?"

"Bruce. Is Bruce alive?"

"You knew? I didn't think anyone who hadn't worked straight from the cave knew who he was. Yeah, Bruce is alive. Not in great shape... He is a hundred and two."

"If Darkseid's threat is not immediate, I want to see him. We didn't leave on the best of terms. I want to fix that."

"From what I hear, no one left him on good terms. He makes a habit of ending things badly."

"But not you?"

"Almost. A few times. He isn't easy to work for. Or compare yourself to."

"You still stayed."

"Yeah. Strange thing is I have Amanda Waller to thank for that."

"I remember her. She still works between the League and the government?"

"Oh no. I just tracked her down for a few answers. I'd like a few from you too. I'm getting that there was something between you. What happened?"

"Nothing happened. He wouldn't let it. He was determined to stand alone."

"Well he managed to do that pretty well."

A silence hung between them, awkward and heavy.

She was another old flame. He hadn't guessed that. Though this one was easier to understand. It wouldn't be easy for a mortal man to be with an immortal woman who looked no different than the pictures of her from more than fifty years ago.

He paused a moment. He wanted to give her a kind of comfort. She wouldn't be ready to see Bruce, not really. It was doubtful she'd had to ever watch anyone grow old. "He didn't always, but he has me. He won't be alone at the end. That means something."

"It does. He's lucky you found him. I was worried he would be alone. Though part of me is surprised he didn't find a way to keep fighting."

"Honestly? Me too. I know it had to do with his health and getting older. But I don't think anyone would have been surprised to find him fighting anyway, and going down when he couldn't handle it anymore. There were a decent number of years between his retiring and me putting on the suit. Gotham suffered for it... I doubt he'll tell anyone what it took for him to stop."

"You're probably right."

He smiled a little, and looked back at her. "It's hard to get stories out of him. Maybe you could tell me a few before you go back home. I know how he worked alone, but team player Bruce is harder to imagine."

"Stories from the old man are rare. Maybe you could tell me a few about him before you go home again."

"You really do care about him, don't you?"

"We've had our moments... I looked up to him as a kid. Worshipped him even." He remembered the words, he'd flat out told them to Bruce during their confrontation. "That went away over time. But I couldn't help but feel some of it come back after I found out the truth from Waller."

"What truth is that?"

* * *

Diana was still reeling from the way her day was going. A new Batman, the son of Bruce, had collected her from her home after telling her Darkseid had returned. And now she was in the cave.

It had been a very long time since she had been here.

"He's upstairs. I should probably warn him you're here." The new Batman, who revealed himself as Terry, walked toward the stairs as he spoke.

"I won't argue. I'll look around for a few minutes before I go up. Just a few."

He gave her a nod and walked away, and she turned to wander around the museum Bruce had made for himself. Most of what she saw she could remember. A few things she didn't. No telling if the new pieces were Bruce's or Terry's.

Fifteen years ago, Bruce's health was so deteriorated he fell asleep with a stranger in his home. A part of her was afraid to see what else the years had done to him. But they both deserved a better goodbye.

She found it didn't take her long to half expect to see Alfred when she turned, ready to offer her hot tea. It saddened her to wonder how long it had been since Alfred would have been in here. Likely, it was far too many years ago.

Alfred had been good for Bruce. Alfred kept Bruce from really sinking into the darkness, and giving into his pain, his self judgement.

If there was one completely and utterly annoying thing about Bruce, it was that he kept raising his standards for himself, expecting always to become a better detective and hero, and becoming angry with himself every time he didn't meet those new standards quickly enough. Alfred was able to stop Bruce before he ran himself ragged.

Deciding she had waited long enough, Diana walked up the long staircase and into the study. Both men turned just enough to look at her. Terry was standing in front of Bruce, who was in his chair. She could see his cane leaned against the desk. When he grabbed the cane and stood, he was shorter. His back bent forward and he hunched over the cane that kept him up. She could see pale skin with deep wrinkles. His hair was nearly gone, with only small wisps of white hair around the sides of his head. And he had deep circles under his yellowed and pained eyes.

"Diana."

Just her name. That's all he would say until she spoke. He wanted to know why she was here, what he would have to do or say for her to leave his home.

"Hello Bruce..." She tried to smile at him. Once, she would have stepped forward to be nearer to him, and maybe even reach out to touch him. She knew it wouldn't be welcomed now.

"I'm gunna go..." Terry spoke up as he moved away. "I want to get home before Dana and lay down before the new night starts. He turned to leave the study, and soon they could hear the front door closing.

"Don't stand on my account Bruce." His knuckles were whiter than the rest of his complexion as he grasped the cane hard. He almost looked like he could teeter to one side in a moment, and he reluctantly sat.

"Why are you here Diana? In my house?"

"Nice to see you again too Bruce."

He glared in response, waiting for his answer.

"I had to come back to man's world to help in the fight. I couldn't come back and not see everyone." Her voice raised a little louder than she likely needed to as she defended herself. He was rejecting her visit more strongly than she would have hoped.

"You can't see everyone..." He sighed, and she felt her chest tighten."You, me, and Kent are the only founding members left."

"Hera..." She sat down now, in the opposing chair. "Sheira didn't even age the way earthlings do..."

"She died in the field. From what I heard, she went into a rage after John was killed, but was overwhelmed. Vigilante and Fire died in the same fight. It was nearly twenty years ago."

"J'onn? ...Wally?"

"J'onn was killed in action too. It was after his wife passed, and he saved a lot of people with his sacrifice."

"And Wally. He died as the Flash?"

"No. Diana, Wally became sick. His body had been strained too hard and for far too long by his speed. As his metabolism became unstable he stared overheated, and he literally couldn't eat enough calories to keep from losing weight. His organs shut down, and in the end he stroked out. He had Superman there with him."

She clenched her fists, not wanting to become emotional in front of Bruce. So many of her friends were gone. She had really always hoped to be called on for help long ago. She had hoped she would see them again after missing them for too long.

"I wish they were still here. I will offer them all tribute when I return home. At least you are here. I think I was closest to you and to Clark."

"We have nothing else to discuss Diana." He turned his chair away, though not completely. Just enough so he wasn't looking her in the eye."

"Yes there is. There's something you put off discussing with me for years. Why did you leave the League Bruce? Why wouldn't you talk to me? To any of us?"

"Ancient history. It doesn't matter anymore Diana."

She'd never stopped wondering in all these years why he gave her the final push away from him. Of course it mattered. He just suddenly quit the league and refused to explain anything to anyone. He wouldn't even let them inside when they tried to visit him at home. He would yell at them on his front porch, door closed to guard it from their eyes. Eventually they all stopped going.

"I need to know Bruce. You hurt us, hurt me. And I need to understand why so I can try to forgive you."

"I don't need forgiveness Diana."

"But I need to be able to forgive you so I can stop being angry Bruce. I need to know why you did it so I can stop wondering what we did that made you cut all ties to us. You owe it to me."

"Fine. I'll tell you"

* * *

A/N: Hey guys. I needs some reviews! Please? Two out of three of them were spam. :(

Thanks to my one true reviewer so far: kzqueen. I would have had this up sooner, but I got called into work on my days off! But I tried to make up for the later update by thinking about my story constantly at work, and hope it paid off in the form of this chapter.


	4. Chapter 4

A/N: Yay, so many new reviews for the last chapter! The encouragement from the reviews really got me to work on this chapter. I'm so glad people are enjoying this. Please keep the reviews coming! The more I get, the more eager I'll be to keep writing.

* * *

They sat in silence a moment as he gathered his thoughts. He hadn't had to talk about about this in a while, especially not to someone who didn't know about any of it.

"I was arrogant. I thought I could take care of Gotham and my League duties. While I was with the League I left a good deal of work for Nightwing, Batgirl and Robin. It seemed the best for everyone. We all did a great amount of good, and the fact that I trusted the others with my city made them... proud. Things between us had never been better. Dick had been tired of my hovering for a lot of years. He felt they had all earned my trust, and should treat them the way I treated my other hero colleagues."

He sighed softly. He didn't want to talk about this. He thought about it often enough already.

"It was a mistake. It was foolish. It was selfish. Tim was still a kid, but I didn't want him to pull away the way Dick had. So I gave him more freedom. I put a lot of responsibility on his shoulders, what Dick always wanted. And I stopped keeping a tracer on him. One night, Tim was patrolling alone while I was working with Kent. Not longer after Darkseid's invasion in 2006. I received a call from Barbara that Tim didn't meet her at their rendezvous point. I went home... and it took us weeks to find him, after the Joker had abducted him."

Three weeks and four days. He had become increasingly desperate to find Tim. It was why Barbara was looking with him, instead of alone, as Dick had. She wanted to keep him from going too far in his interrogations.

He paused, reached for his pills. He had to take them, but he really just wanted something to do as he talked rather than watch Diana.

"Tim was broken. Tortured into revealing my name, devastated by the fact that he killed Joker... He had nightmares that always ended in tears and laughing fits until I had to drug him to get him calm down. I left the League because I was needed here."

He'd left the company too. Claiming early retirement, very early, he needed more time for Tim that wouldn't take away from his nights back in Gotham. He spent the very early morning hours sleeping, usually from five am to eight am, and all of his other time was for Tim and for Gotham.

The laughing fits were the hardest part... Every time Tim cried, he laughed... and laughed. No matter how hard the boy tried to stop, in his first weeks home, the only way he could stop was to knock him out after so many hours... Tim went horse several times.

"That is terrible Bruce..." She spoke slowly, and he could see she was trying to find the right words. "But I don't understand. Why didn't you ask for our help? When he was missing? After even, you could have talked to us. It helps-"

"I'm not a talker. And the League was busy when Tim was missing... I didn't think it would take that long for me to find him. My focus was all here. I was angry... at myself, and at Dick. I blamed him, for years. It was his anger over my being protective that lead to my carelessness. Or that is what I wanted to believe. I know, as... as the adult, it was up to me to make the right choices, no matter how they were received. It was my fault I decided Tim liking me was more important than keeping him safe."

That was his other biggest regret. The first would always be letting Tim get caught, letting such a young boy work the streets of Gotham alone. How could he be so stupid!

But in that time... Dick had come home. Dick was there for Tim, there for Barbara, and even tried to ease Bruce's guilt. After months passed and Tim remained a shell, one day, Bruce had snapped... He had screamed at Dick, in his weakest moment, tried to shift his own guilt to his son.

He got three different bottles of pills open, and took the appropriate numbers of each. He didn't usually bother with water, though right now he wished he had some.

"Where Dick had once given me the silent treatment, I now gave him mine. As stupid as that was... Tim came to hate me. He wanted to be Robin again, when he was doing better. I wouldn't allow it. By then I had worked in Gotham alone for years. I didn't want him near all that again. When he was old enough to move out he did. None of us spoke anymore. Even when they came to Alfred's funeral, none of us said anything. He would have been very disappointed in all of us."

He could see her resisting the urge to agree. "Your friends missed you Bruce. We would have tried to help..."

"I know... And now you know. Do you feel better now?" It was meant to sound cold, to send her away.

"I do. At least there was a reason."

His cold voice really never worked on her. Not after the Thanagarian invasion, after he had kissed her in that restaurant. "It was only a matter of time anyway. I couldn't have managed both for much longer as it was."

"Did you ever tell them you were sorry Bruce?"

"I told Tim... quite often, after getting him home. But Dick... No. We haven't spoken since that night."

"You should you know."

"Diana..." He said her name slow, looking at her now with his usual glare."I don't want or need your advice. It's been too long, the damage is done. Just stay out of it. Go to the tower. Get the hell out of my house!"

Her glare was almost as cold as his own. "That isn't going to work on me Bruce."

"I just want to be alone Diana."

"You're always alone Bruce."

"Terry is here, twice every day. It's more interaction than I need."

"Bruce, please. I've missed my friends... I missed..." She stopped for a minute, letting her words trail off. "We were never as close as I wanted us to be Bruce. And that hurt. But we were friends, and I know that you cared. Don't push me away while I'm here. I don't deserve that."

He couldn't exactly argue that point.

"Right now, I need you to go Diana. If you have to, you can come back. Go see Kent. Look around the tower. Meet the new members. John and Shayera had a son, he's working with the League." He looked at her, and allowed himself to look pleading.

"I will be back Bruce. Don't doubt that." She stood, and he felt her hand on the top of his shoulder. "I missed you Bruce. I'm sorry I didn't fight harder then to get in." Then she walked out, and he watched her go.

He really couldn't decide just how angry to be at Terry right now for bringing her here. He should be belligerently angry, ready to tell the kid off when he showed up tonight. He wasn't.

He had missed her too.


	5. Chapter 5

The phone rang and Terry groaned in annoyance. He checked the clock and saw that it was six pm, so he's slept for just over five hours. Felt like less. He picked up the phone, and closed his eyes again. "Hello?"

"Tell me again how I let you talk me into this."

"Mattie?" He yawned. "What's your problem?"

"You for one, bum. For two, I let you talk me into going to business school."

"And you're graduating at the top of your class. So problem?"

"You'd get it if you knew what a real job was like."

Terry rubbed the sleep from his eyes and sat up. "So I'm supposed to feel bad my fiance is loaded? Psh. Not everyone gets chances like you're about to get Matt. You are going to run one of the biggest companies in the world, and you're barely twenty-one."

Waller had told Terry he had Bruce's heart, but not his 'magnificent' brain. Matt it seemed, had that. The twerp had skipped a total of three different grades over the years, breezing through courses Terry had struggled with even before taking his night job. When Bruce realized how well Mattie could manage those sorts of things, he'd offered to prep Wayne Enterprises and hand it over to Matt.

"Exactly! I'm not going to know what I'm doing. No one will think I know what I'm doing. My entire life has been decided!"

"It's a job Matt, and an opportunity. You don't have to do it."

"I would have to be crazy not to do it!"

He groaned. "Matt. Just breathe for a sec. You're freaking out, and I get it. This won't be easy to step into. But you will. You can handle it better than you think. And, well, I might even be able to convince Mr. Wayne to let you pick his brain."

"Really? Cause that might help."

"I'll talk to him."

"Soon."

"Yes Twerp, soon. He'll probably go for it. After all the Powers crap Mr. Wayne does want to be sure the next Wayne Enterprises President will meet his standards."

"Okay. Ter?"

"Yeah?"

"Thanks. You're okay, even for a jobless bum."

"Shut up." Terry hung up the phone and got up. He really should have gotten up earlier, he was supposed to make dinner and Dana would be home soon. He stuck with the basics. Whole wheat pasta and a farmer's market tomato sauce(Because god forbid they eat something with preservatives) full of mushroom chunks.

He heard Dana come in as he drained the pasta. "Hey. How was work?"

"Annoying." She peeked at their dinner and smiled. "Lucky for me some red wine will go great with that. Want one?"

"Can't. High alert stuff goin' on. I have to get an early start tonight."

"I'm off tomorrow. We can share some when you come back in the morning."

"Wine with breakfast?"

"... We'll make mimosas. And I'll make crepes..."

"It's a date." He smiled and kissed her. "But sleep in till I wake you. In case the night runs long."

"I can do that."

* * *

He left for the manor by 7:30 and let himself in. He used to ring the bell, but about eight years ago Bruce decided he didn't need to be bothered answering the door every night. It still felt weird to have the key to this place.

He made a B-line for the study and was surprised when he didn't find Bruce. He was always waiting in the study. Still, Terry was early. So he checked the kitchen, the dining hall, Bruce's bedroom and even the bathrooms.

"Bruce, where are you?" He called out in the house as he went. Nothing. Damnit. He might have gone downstairs. He's not supposed to do that alone. "Bruce!"

Then he saw a door open.

"Right here." Bruce stood in the doorway. "Time got away from me..."

"What are you doing in there?" He walked up to Bruce, and couldn't help but look inside. Terry had gone into this room once, and borrowed a suit. He learned later that the D.G. the tux belonged to was Dick Grayson. He still thought it was weird a grown man had his initials on his tag.

"Remembering. Go on. You should see if Kent managed to learn anything."

"Right. You sure you're okay? I can ask him from here, they might not need me right away."

A long stare was Bruce's only answer.

"Right. I'll go. I don't know how long you were remembering, but probably too long. You should eat. Sleep for once too."

"If Kent doesn't need you right away, you should read the computer's files on the Anti-Life Equation. You'll need to know all you can to deal with Darkseid and Luthor."

"I will. Come on Bruce. I'll heat up the soup for you. It'll only take a few minutes." He started walking Bruce to the elevator.

"Don't bother. I can still feed myself."

"I know. You just seem to be having a bad day Bruce... Did Diana say something to mess with you?"

"I told her about Tim, she wanted to know why I left the League. I'm just dwelling on it."

"Then... why were you in Dick's room?"

"It was shortly after that Dick and I stopped talking. I said things to him I regret, and we haven't spoken since then." Bruce didn't look up as he spoke, and he always did. Bruce just was not the kind of person to stare at his feet as he walked, he always looked forward. Terry could just feel the shame radiating off the man, and it was kind of freaking him out.

Bruce had admitted to quite a few very intense decisions that were arguably very immoral, with really no regret. Bruce was okay with most of his bad choices because no matter what happened, he knew he had done the best he could with the information he had. He realized he truly hated seeing Bruce like this.

"Because he refuses to... or because you do?"

"Some of both I imagine." The elevator took them down, and Terry walked Bruce to the kitchen despite the older man's continued he had seemed to give up, because he sat at the small table while Terry grabbed the soup from the fridge. "Neither of us were very good with talking things out..."

"Doesn't mean you shouldn't. You felt better after Tim came here to talk, right? After all the Joker stuff was over."

"... Tim told me he forgave me. It helped."

"So you should try to do the same with Dick... tell him you're sorry. Give him the opportunity to forgive you too."

"I'll consider it."

"Uh-Huh." Terry put the soup down and got Bruce a glass of water.

"Just go."

"Alright. I'll check in if I run late." With that he left for the cave.

* * *

A/N: That took longer than I expected. I had to pick up extra hours at work this week and it kept me busy.


End file.
